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Posted: 3/2/2012 5:11:50 PM
Well, it was sleeting here today. So I took out my 'Taco' for the first time through some grass fields. I didn't even notice it was slick the way the 'Taco' just cruised along in 4H. My old two wheel drive truck would have gotten stuck for sure today. Glad it's gone and I now have the Toyota. The only thing I wanted to do was take it down a long but not too steep grade to our shooting range that sits in a draw. But since I am inexperienced and still have the original dealer tires; I thought it would be wise to try it some other time and when I had somebody with me. All for now but it sure was fun..
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Posted: 3/2/2012 5:50:29 PM
Originally Posted By dab2:
Well, it was sleeting here today. So I took out my 'Taco' for the first time through some grass fields. I didn't even notice it was slick the way the 'Taco' just cruised along in 4H. My old two wheel drive truck would have gotten stuck for sure today. Glad it's gone and I now have the Toyota. The only thing I wanted to do was take it down a long but not too steep grade to our shooting range that sits in a draw. But since I am inexperienced and still have the original dealer tires; I thought it would be wise to try it some other time and when I had somebody with me. All for now but it sure was fun.. The tricks I use to going downhill in slick terrain is to use 4low, keep it in 1st gear, and let the engine to the work (think Jake-break on a diesel semi... engine compression breaking works very similar on a gas engine). I also try not to use my breaks and actually drive down the hill. I have found even with light break modulation I go into a skid. By using 4Low and keeping it in 1st gear I can drive in 4wd and let the front end pull me down hill rather than coast without any forward pull. Although with ice all bets are off because 4wd is pretty much useless on ice unless you have studded tires. 
It just takes time and practice and getting comfortable with your truck. |
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Posted: 3/2/2012 7:48:25 PM
Originally Posted By pajeepguy:
The tricks I use to going downhill in slick terrain is to use 4low, keep it in 1st gear, and let the engine to the work (think Jake-break on a diesel semi... engine compression breaking works very similar on a gas engine). I also try not to use my breaks and actually drive down the hill. I have found even with light break modulation I go into a skid. By using 4Low and keeping it in 1st gear I can drive in 4wd and let the front end pull me down hill rather than coast without any forward pull. Although with ice all bets are off because 4wd is pretty much useless on ice unless you have studded tires.
It just takes time and practice and getting comfortable with your truck. Thanks pajeepguy...I will try that next time. So, next question...On the same hill, do you once again use 4low in 1st to go back up? I of course will not be driving on ice...on purpose anyway.  The times I found myself going down a steep icy back road/country road, I would put my 2wheel drive truck in neutral and found that since the drive-train wasn't pushing me, I rarely started sliding.
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Posted: 3/2/2012 8:39:11 PM
Originally Posted By dab2:
Originally Posted By pajeepguy:
The tricks I use to going downhill in slick terrain is to use 4low, keep it in 1st gear, and let the engine to the work (think Jake-break on a diesel semi... engine compression breaking works very similar on a gas engine). I also try not to use my breaks and actually drive down the hill. I have found even with light break modulation I go into a skid. By using 4Low and keeping it in 1st gear I can drive in 4wd and let the front end pull me down hill rather than coast without any forward pull. Although with ice all bets are off because 4wd is pretty much useless on ice unless you have studded tires.
It just takes time and practice and getting comfortable with your truck. Thanks pajeepguy...I will try that next time. So, next question...On the same hill, do you once again use 4low in 1st to go back up? I of course will not be driving on ice...on purpose anyway. The times I found myself going down a steep icy back road/country road, I would put my 2wheel drive truck in neutral and found that since the drive-train wasn't pushing me, I rarely started sliding.
Going into neutral downhill is bad because you loose the ability to drive out of a skid so you're basically at the mercy of gravity and momentum. As for going UP the same hill, you can use drive but you'll want to use momentum rather than raw speed. Don't hill the hill at full-throttle but hit it with enough speed that you can maintain a consistent speed up the hill. 4low vs. 4high will depend on how loose the surface is. If it is a "road" you should be okay in 4high... if it is a "trail" you most likely will be in 4low anyway and will just stay in 4low. When I go out trail riding at the off road park I am in 4low all day. When I am up in the mountains on fire roads I am in 4high pretty much all day unless I *need* to go into 4low for something tricky. |
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Posted: 3/2/2012 9:10:39 PM
Originally Posted By pajeepguy:
Going into neutral downhill is bad because you loose the ability to drive out of a skid so you're basically at the mercy of gravity and momentum. As for going UP the same hill, you can use drive but you'll want to use momentum rather than raw speed. Don't hill the hill at full-throttle but hit it with enough speed that you can maintain a consistent speed up the hill. 4low vs. 4high will depend on how loose the surface is. If it is a "road" you should be okay in 4high... if it is a "trail" you most likely will be in 4low anyway and will just stay in 4low. When I go out trail riding at the off road park I am in 4low all day. When I am up in the mountains on fire roads I am in 4high pretty much all day unless I *need* to go into 4low for something tricky. Got it! Thanks once more! |
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Posted: 3/20/2012 10:59:34 PM
I am going out trail riding on 31-March and again next month on the weekend of April 20th-22nd. If anyone is interested in heading out with me let me know. The off road park is located about an hour outside Harrisburg PA in the central part of the state. PM me directly for information/time/etc. It would be a basic trial ride so anything "stock" that is 4wd will work. Don't have to worry about being an experienced driver either. This would be a good time for someone to come out, get their truck/suv dirty and learn a few things... or just connect with a few ArfComers in the area.
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Posted: 4/24/2012 9:30:04 PM
So I had the Jeep out again this past weekend. I think the time has come to rebuild the front suspension. I had replaced my bushings a while back with polyurethane ones but only did the lower control arms. I think my uppers are shot and my lowers are bent up pretty bad. Too many rocks I guess.
This illustrates two points I guess: #1 - don't cut corners. As much as the uppers in the front would have been a pain to replace, I should have done them when I had the chance. #2 - Stock suspension components just aren't up to the abuse, especially when other parts (shocks, springs, swaybar, etc) have been upgraded. Weak links will be found. I am looking into getting a set of aftermarket arms from a friend that just need rebuilt. Might snap a few pics of the rebuild process as well as the instal just incase any of you want to see the comparison between what a stock part looks like after years of abuse and 170k miles and what an aftermarket part looks like. |
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Posted: 4/25/2012 7:01:53 AM
Originally Posted By pajeepguy:
So I had the Jeep out again this past weekend. I think the time has come to rebuild the front suspension. I had replaced my bushings a while back with polyurethane ones but only did the lower control arms. I think my uppers are shot and my lowers are bent up pretty bad. Too many rocks I guess. This illustrates two points I guess: #1 - don't cut corners. As much as the uppers in the front would have been a pain to replace, I should have done them when I had the chance. #2 - Stock suspension components just aren't up to the abuse, especially when other parts (shocks, springs, swaybar, etc) have been upgraded. Weak links will be found. I am looking into getting a set of aftermarket arms from a friend that just need rebuilt. Might snap a few pics of the rebuild process as well as the instal just incase any of you want to see the comparison between what a stock part looks like after years of abuse and 170k miles and what an aftermarket part looks like. I'd like to see those pics if you don't mind takin' the time. |
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Posted: 5/1/2012 1:27:02 PM
Why fire extinguishers are a good idea to keep in your 4x4: Jeep Fire at Local Off Road Park
This happened the weekend AFTER I was up there. Crazy to think something like a transmission line failure can cause a fire like that. I can also say this is a catalyst for me to not only upgrade my current extinguisher but to also look into carrying a 2nd one. I am going to try and mount one behind the front seat and then keep the 2nd one in the back where I keep my current one. |
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Posted: 6/9/2012 11:38:09 PM
Originally Posted By pajeepguy:
Why fire extinguishers are a good idea to keep in your 4x4: Jeep Fire at Local Off Road Park
This happened the weekend AFTER I was up there. Crazy to think something like a transmission line failure can cause a fire like that. I can also say this is a catalyst for me to not only upgrade my current extinguisher but to also look into carrying a 2nd one. I am going to try and mount one behind the front seat and then keep the 2nd one in the back where I keep my current one. Definitely good idea...I will be getting one to put in my cab besides the one that is in my bed's side compartment! Thanks for the heads up pajeepguy! |
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Posted: 12/25/2012 1:32:04 AM
Well, I finally put the BF Goodrich Rugged Terrain Tires on and took my 'Taco' up and down the Midwest hills here that have about 4" of snow and ice. It didn't miss a beat...like I was driving on dry pavement. Boy, I like this Tacoma! I would have pics but my wife is in Taiwan with our one and only camera. We have throw away phones so we don't have cameras on those either. When she gets home I'll take some pics next time we get snow.
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USA
Posts: 1890
